Ladder-handle-forming machine.



PATENTED APR. 11, 1905.

J. S. STEVENSON. LADDER HANDLE FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2, 1902.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

87,128- PATENTED APR. 11, 1905. L J. s. STEVENSON. LADDER HANDLE FORMINGMACHINE.

APPLICATION nun AUG. 2. 1902. 1 7 SHBBTSSHEET 2.

J u v w No. 787,128. PATENTBD APR. 11, 1905. J. S. STEVENSON.

LADDER HANDLE FORMING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED AUG, 2, 1902.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

No. 787,128. PATENTED APR. 11, 1905. J. S. STEVENSON. f LADDER HANDLEFORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2, 1902.

"1 SHEBTS-SHEET 4.

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% zz'iiaaaeax PATENTED APR. 11, 1905.

J. S. STEVENSON.

LADDER HANDLE FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.2,1902.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

PATENTED APR. 11, 1905.

J. S. STEVENSON.

LADDER HANDLE FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2, 1902.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 6,

No. 787.128. PATEN'IED APR.11, 1905. J. S. STEVENSON.

LADDER HANDLE FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2, 1902.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 7.

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Patented April 11, 1905.

UNTTED STATES PATENT @FFICE...

JOIIN S. STEVENSON, ()F DIC'IROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIHNOR TO A.\IIGRIU.-\N

(Alt & FOUNDRY COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORA- TION OF NIUVJERSEY.

LADDER-HANDLE-FORIVHNG MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 787,128, dated April11, 1905.

Application filed August 2,1902. Serial No. 118,096.

1'0 (/M whom, it nuty (OIL/W770.

Be it known that I, .Ioux S. S lnvnxscm, a citizen of the United States,residing at Detroit, Wayne county, Michigan, have invented a certain newand useful Improvement in LiltlilQF'I'IiLllLllD-FOlllllllQ' Machines, ofwhich the followingis a full, clear, and exact description, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same, reference being had to the accompany- 1 ing drawings, formingpart of this specification, in which Figure l is a. top plan view of myimproved ladder-hamlle-forming machine. Fig. 2 is a front elevationalview. Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 3 3, Fig. 1. Fig. i is asectional View on line I I, Fig. I. Fig. 5 isa rear elevational view.Fig. 6 is a side elevational view illustrating the power-shaft at therighthand side of the machine. Figs. T, S, 9, l0, and ll arediagrammatic views illustrating the action of the several dies informing the hulder-handle. Fig. 12 a detail view showing thelmlder-handle as formed upon my im proved machine: and Figs. 13, l-i,and l5are a machine which will produce ladder-handles In operationrapidly and at small expense. the rods from which the handles are formedare lirst heated in an appropriate furnace,

, which are previously cu t to the proper length,

and when the rods are heated sulliciently the operator places the heatedend in the machine and at one stroke the heated end is bent and upset toform the perforated securing-eye of the ladder-handle. The handle withits end so formed is removed from the machine and subsequently theopposite or straight end of the rod which has been operated upon is heated and treated in a similar manner, the two operations, one for each endof the handle, forming a completed handle ready for use.

The machine shown in the accompanying drawings is provided with meanswhereby the operator can have the machine make a stroke to form one endof the handle. after which the machine automatically stops to await theintrodueti m of another heated rod. However, under favorable conditionsthe machine can be continuously operated, the rods being -fed thereto inrapid succession, so that at 3 every operation of the machine one end ofthe handle is formed, in which event the capacity of the machine islimited only by the ability of the operatm' to feed the rods thereto.

.\Iy invention consists in the construction,

, arrangement, and combination of the several parts, all as willhereinafter he described, and afterward pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, l indicates the frame of the machine, which ispreferably a casting appropriately shaped and of such height as to- 1cured to the bed for well-understood purposes.

preferably located near the machine, and

which furnace has a capacity for a number of such rods. A helper ispreferably employed in addition to the operator who feeds the rodsto myimproved machine. This helper attends to the heating of the ends of therods,

{gear cof'iperates a pinion 6.

4: indicates the driving-shaft, which is provided with a gear 5 on one.end, with which (See Fig. (3.)

i This pinion is mounted on a counter-shaft T,

which is provided with a clutch mechanism 8 belt (not shown) from anysuitable source of power. Counter-shaft 7 is also provided with aband-brake mechanism 10, by which the machine is brought to a positionof rest after a single operation. This power-shaft is controlled by theoperator depressing a treadle 11, (see Fig. 2,) which treadle if helddepressed will cause the machine to operate continuously. However, if itis desired that the machine shall operate once and then automaticallystop treadle 11 is depressed and released before the single operation iscompleted. The manner in which the treadle controls the power-shaft maybe that commonly employed in punching and other machinery, and thereforeI do not wish to be understood as limiting my invention to the use ofthe particulardevices shown. However, I will briefly describe theconstruction of my controlling devices. The treadle 11 is substantiallyU- shaped, the cross-bar thereof being located at the front end of themachine. The legs of this U-shaped treadle extend into the framing 1 andare pivoted to the back wall thereof, as shown in Fig. 4. Springs 12 areconnected to these legs to hold the treadle normally in an elevatedposition. A link 13 is connected to oneleg of the treadle and to arock-arm 14 on a rock-shaft 15. This rock-shaft, as shown in Fig. 5, isprovided with a rock-arm 16, connected by a link 17 to an arm 18,loosely mounted on a shaft 19. This arm 18 is provided with a hubportion having projections cooperating with pawls 20, whereby when thearm 18 is rocked these pawls are thrown out of engagement with the hubof the arm 18, so as to release the band-brake and at the same timethrow the clutch 8 into operative position. This is accomplished throughthe medium of a rock-arm 21 on the shaft 19, which is connected by alink 22 to an arm 23, to which arm 23 one end of the band-brake isconnected. Arm 23 is mounted on shaft 24, which shaft is provided with amiter-gear 25, meshing with a pinion 26. This pinion 26 is conjoined toan arm 27, which arm is connected by a link 28 to one end of a lever 29,said lever having its other end connected to a sliding member of theclutch mechanism 8. The purpose of the eccentric 29 and its rod 30 is toautomatically throw the pawls 20 out of engagement with the projectionson the arm 18 when the treadle 11 is held depressed. I do not hereinclaim the construction and arrangement of this pawl mechanism and itsassociate parts, as the same are well known in machines where it isdesired to have them operate once and then automatically stop upon therelease of the treadle, but when the treadle is held at rest to operatecontinuously until the treadle is released.

The power-shaft 4L referred to is mounted in appropriate bearings at theright-hand side of the machine and has arranged upon it driving-cams andrecovering-cams operating the several moving parts of my machine.Driving-cam 31 operates a series of plungers for moving the first orinitial bending-die into operative position. Driving-cam 32 operates aseries of plungers for moving the second or lateral die into positionafter the first-mentioned die is at home. Driving-cams 33 are for movingthe upsetting-plunger into position to form the head on the handle afterthe first and second mentioned dies are at home. Driving-cam 34:operates a plunger-rod to pierce the head on the ladder-handle and formthe opening therein for the reception of a securing bolt or screw. Thisplunger-rod is operated when the dies and plungers above referred to aremomentarily in an operative position upon the formation of one end ofthe ladder-handle, and driving-cam 35 operates an auxiliary mechanismfor finishing up the formed end of the ladder-handle in the event thatfins or feather-edges are left thereon. Recovering-cam 31 cooperateswith the plungers of the initial die to recover the same.

Recovering-cam 32 cooperates with the plum gers connected to thesecondary die to recover the same. Cams 33 being in the form ofeccentrics and having straps embracing them, are recovered by saidstraps, and consequently need no special recovering devices. 34indicates recovering-cams for the plunger-rod which forms the opening inthe head of the ladder-handle, and 35 is a recovering-cam for theauxiliary finishing device. All of these driving and recovering cams areconstructed so as to operate at the proper time with respect toeachother, the order of their operation being hereinafter described.

36 indicates a plunger having mounted in one of its ends a roller 37 forcooperating with the driving-cam 31'and a roller 38 for cooperating witha cam-groove in the side face of the recovering-cam 31. This plunger isbifurcated and provided with shoulders 39 on its inner faces, againstwhich bears a frangible plate 40. V

41 indicates a block bearing against this frangible plate, said blockbeing interposed between said plate and a head 42 of a plunger 43. Thishead 42 is held in proper position with respect to the plunger 36 bymeans of straps M, so that lost motion is avoided.

The purpose of the construction just above described is to provide abreakable drive for the plunger 43. If too much resistance is offered tothe movement of plunger 4E3 under the action of cam 31, this resistancewill be concentrated at a central point upon the breakable plate 40, andas power is applied to the ends of said plate through the lugs 39 it isobvious that said plate will carry a load only up to the limit of itsstrength, and if the imposed load exceeds the strength of the plate theplate will be broken and the plunger 36 will be driven while the plunger43 remains at rest. The straps ME in this instance move away from thehead 4L2.

Plunger l3 is provided with a rod 415 at its outer end, which has acollar +16 secured to it, said rod passing through a spring-housing 4C7,mounted upon the bed. A spring a8 is interposed between the collar andthe end of the housing, which spring, when the plunger $3 is movingunder the action of the drivingcam, is compressed, the power storedtherein being utilized to assist in recovering the set of plungersconnected to plunger 43 in the retracted movement thereof.

Plunger :53 has its outer end inclined and provided with a T-shapedgroove for receiving a T-shaped projection on thecorrespondingly-inclined end of a plunger 49, operating substantially atright angles to the plunger 4:3. The opposite end of plunger a9 isinclined and also provided with a T-shaped groove for receiving aT-shaped projection on the inclined end of the die-carrying plunger 50.

51 indicates the die carried by plunger 50, said die being the initialbending-die, before referred to.

52 indicates a plunger having rollers 53 and at one end for cooperatingwith the driving and recovering cams and 32, respectively. The oppositeend of this plunger 52 is inclined and provided with a T-shaped groovefor receiving a T-shaped projection on the beveled end of a die-carryingplunger 53, operating substantially at right angles to the movement ofplunger 52. This plunger 53 carries a die 5i, which is the diehereinbefore referred to as the secondary die.

indicates a cross-head to which the straps of eccentrics 33 arepivotally connected, said cross'head carrying a plunger 56 at one end.

57 indicates an auxiliary cross-head having rollers 58 and 59 mounted inone end thereof, which rollers cooperate with the driving and recoveringcams 3i and 348, respectively. This auxiliary cross-head carries aplungerrod 61), which extends through an opening in the plunger 56.

61 indicates the stationary die, mounted in the bed-plate of themachine.

62 ind icates an adjustable stop or guide plate coi'iperating with theend of the rod to be formed, said stop determining the amount of metalbent in between the dies to be subsequently upset to form the head ofthe ladderhandle.

62 indicates a notched plate secured to the bed-plate of the machine, inthe notch of which the rod to be operated upon is received when itsheated end is introduced into the machine to be operated upon. Thecrosshead is provided with aninclined T-shaped groove on one side, intowhich fits the T- shaped projection 63 of the driving-plunger for theauxiliary finishing device. The opposite end of this driving-plunger isinclined and provided with T-shaped groove for receiving a T-shapedprojection on the inclined end of a plunger 6%, movable at right anglesto the plunger 63. This plunger Gl'carries a plunger-rod 65, whichoperates through the stationary die-block 66, said die-block beingdesigned to receive the linished .end of the ladder-handle for purposeshereinbefore explained.

67 indicates a plunger carrying the finishing-die 68. This plunger isalso provided with rollers 69 and 70, which cooperate with the drivingand recovering cams and 35, respectively. As it is not desired tooperate this finishing device at every operation of the main machine, Iprovide clutch member 71, which cooperates with the cams 35 and 35,which clutch member may be thrown into and out of operative position bymeans of a foottreadle T2 and connected levers, as shown in Fig. 6.

It is obvious that instead of providing the particular plungersmentioned with the T- shaped grooves and T-shaped projections,respectively, these grooves and projections could be transposed on theseveral parts; fur

ther, that other forms of sliding connections and interlocks between theparts which move at angles with respect to each other could be employed.The purpose of interlocking these angularly-movable parts with eachother is to enable their recovery after operation. 1 am also aware thatin the transmission of motion as herein shown and described there issome loss of power due to the large area of the cooperating inclinedfaces and friction incident thereupon; but this loss is compensated forby the directness in the application of power to the dies, which isnecessary by reason of the fact that these dies must lit close togetherand be held in such close relation during the time that the metal isbeing upset. \Vhileit is possible to use levers to move the dies to andfrom their respective operative positions, such levers are liable tospring or yield during the upsetting action of the metal, so as to formtins at the joints of the ladder-hamlle. \Vhile l have contemplated theemployment of levers as a means of transmitting motion to the severaldies as coming within the scope of my invention, yet I prefer theconstruction shown because of its positiveness, ease of adjustment, andsm1ll liability to get out of order.

Referringnow to the diagrammatic views of T to 11, inclusive, 1 willdescribe the action of the dies upon the rod X. I will assume that therod is of the desired diameter and length and also that the end to beformed has been heated before the rod is subjected to the action of thedies. Upon being intmduced into the machine the rod is lirst droppedinto the notched plate 62 and then into the groove 0 of the stationarydie 61, after which it is moved up against the stop 62. The treadle 11is now operated, and the first action thereof l is to move the initialbending-die 51 into the 1 position shown m Fig. 8, wherem it will be IISshank of the handle.

seen that the groove 6 in said die 51 has received the bar X, saidgroove 6 registering with groove a, and, further, that the end of therod has been bent laterally into the recess 0 of the stationary die 61.The next step is the moving into position of the lateral die 54, whosegroove d registers with the groove 0, as

shown in Fig. 9. The plunger 56 is now moved into position, said plungerfitting snugly in the grooves 0 and (Z and upsetting the end of the rodand forcing the same into the matrix 6 in the die 51, which gives shapeto the head of the ladder-handle. This die 51, as shown, is providedwith a channelf', leading into adischarge-opening 9, opening through thebottom of the die. Channel f is located substantially in the center ofthe bottom of the matrix e and in alinement with the plunger-head 60.Any surplus metal in the matrix will find a path of escape through thischannel f; but it is intended in the formation of the ladder-handle thatonly a sufficient amount of metal will be bent in the die-recesses aswill be used up in the formation of the head and When the plunger 56reaches its home position and the head and shank of the handle areformed, the plungerrod 60 is operated, so as to pierce the head and forman opening therein, which opening is designed to receive a securing boltor screw when the ladder-handleis attached in position on the car. Themetal punched out of the head by the plunger rod or punch 60 will dropthrough the opening g into a suitable receptacle placed thereunder. Asshown in Fig. 3, the driving-cam 34, which operates the punch 60, has avery short face, as the movement to be imparted to the punch-rod isrelatively slight. It will also be observed in this figure that therecovering-cams 34B are so located as to act in withdrawing thepunch-rod 60 immediately after it has completed its Work. This isnecessary, as the punch-rod must be inserted through the head andwithdrawn from the head before the head is released by the other dies.

In the event that a fin or feather-edge is left on the head, made asabove described, due to an overflow of the metal in any of the crevicesin the dies, the head can be inserted into position in the recess lb ofdie 66 in the auxiliary finishing device. When in this recess, the die68 moves up into position to flatten out any projecting fins, and theplunger-rod passes through the opening in the head, but in an oppositedirection to the movement of the punch-rod 60 through said head. Thispunching of the opening from opposite sides of the head and the actionof the flatteningdie 68 produces a smooth finished head having anopening therein, the edges of which head and said opening being freefrom fins.

1 am aware that many minor changes in the construction, arrangement, andcombination of the several parts of my device can be made shaft andhaving a complementary offset-forming face, said last-mentioned die alsohaving a matrix in its end face, a connecting-passage leading throughsaid matrix and movable die, a supplemental movable die, means operableby the shaft for imparting movement to the last-mentioned die at rightangles to the movement of the first-mentioned movable die after the samehas been placed at home, a plunger, a punch passing longitudinallythrough said plunger into said connecting passage, and means foroperating said plunger and punch.

2. In a machine for forming ladder-handles, the combination with astationary die, of a die for bending the rod at its joint or offset,said bending-die also having a matrix for the shank and head of thehandle, a housing-die which is moved into position after the rod is bentto form the offset joint referred to, an upsettingdie which forces themetal into the matrix in the first-mentioned die to form the head andshank of the handle, and a punch-rod carried by the upsetting-die forpunching an opening in the head of the handle after said head is formed.

3. In a ladder-handle-forming machine, a fixed die having anoffset-forming face, aplurality of movable complementary diescooperating therewith, and movable at substantially right angles to eachother, a common operating-shaft, means on the shaft for operating thedies at relatively different times, all of said dies being provided withcoincident recesses, an upsetting member adapted to travel in thecoincident recesses of a plurality of said dies and cooperating withsaid dies and a punch-rod adapted to be projected through said upsettingmember and through one of said movable dies.

4. In a machine of the character described, a relatively fixeddie-section, having an offsetforming face, a movable complementary diehaving a cooperating offset-forming face, and an aperture therein, asecond movable die, said second movable die and the stationary diehaving channels in their opposing faces, means for operating the dies,an upsetting-plunger adapted to travel in said channels of the dies, apunch adapted to travel through the plunger into the aperture of thefirst-mentioned movable die, and means for operating the plunger andpunch after the movement of said dies.

5. In a machine of the character described, the combination withforming-dies, a main operating shaft, instrnmentalities associatedtherewith for operating the dies, a stationary finishing-die, apunch-rod passing through said finishing-die, means operated by one ofthe forming-dies for driving said pnnch-rod, a movable companionfinishing-die, and means operatively associated with the main shaft fordriving and recovering the movable companion finishing-die.

6. in a machine of the character described, the combination with astationary die, of a die for bending the rod at its joint or otfset,said l )ending-die also having a matrix for the shank and head of thehandle, an upsetting-die which forces the metal into the matrix into thesecond-mentioned die to form the head and shank of the handle, and apunch-rod carried by the upsetting-die for punching an opening in thehead of the handle after said head is formed.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature, in the presence oftwo witnesses, this 24th day of July, 1902.

JOHN S. STEVENSON. Vitnesses:

M. H. Soo'r'r, ANTON EKSIROM.

